Cops: Man sells bogus subscriptions to 'easy to fool' victims

A Youngstown, Ohio, man faces felony theft by deception charges after collecting money for bogus magazine subscriptions from Riverside residents he found “easy to fool,” police said today.

Frederick Dawson, 42, was fired from a Missouri magazine subscription company in May, but recently has been going door-to-door in Riverside, soliciting for magazine subscriptions and pocketing the money, Riverside Police Chief Thomas Weitzel said in a release.

Several other west suburban police departments are investigating whether Dawson did the same in their communities, he said.

“Mr. Dawson told investigators that suburban Cook County residents were easy to fool, as several homeowners just gave him money because he looked nice or [they] felt sorry for him,” Weitzel said in the release.

Dawson had a list of several resident names marked with comments like "good man" or "very nice person,” so he could return to the same homes if he needed money again, Weitzel said in the release.

Dawson was arrested about 11:20 a.m. Tuesday in the 100 block of Northgate Road in the west suburb after someone complained to police.

At first, it seemed Dawson was a legitimate subscription salesperson, because he had the correct paperwork and receipts, but officers called the company he claimed to be working for and officials there told police he was fired in May.

The victim who talked to police initially picked Dawson out of a lineup, and this afternoon he was being held by Riverside police, pending further investigation.